Boris Gryzhlov, leader of Unity's faction in the State Duma,
said on 28 March that rumors about the possibility of a
coalition government are false, ITAR-TASS reported. He said
that "the current political situation can be characterized by
the phrase 'the winner takes all.' It is entirely up to
[President-elect] Putin whether or not to offer his recent
rivals positions in the executive branch." He added that the
post of prime minister will most likely be chosen from the
ranks of the government's current cabinet officials. Dmitrii
Medvedev, the head of Putin's election campaign team, said
the same day that "the second and third places [in the
presidential elections] are not prize-winning places this
time." However, Duma Chairman (Communist) Gennadii Seleznev
said on 29 March that he has discussed the idea of a
coalition government with Putin, who he said "is not
allergic" to this idea. And Seleznev added that Putin
realizes that "if 30 percent of votes support the left, then
it must be taken into consideration." JAC

...AS MALASHENKO SAYS PUTIN HAS ONLY TWO CHOICES

Media Most
Deputy Chairman Igor Malashenko told Ekho Moskvy on 28 March
that since "Unity is by no means a party," President-elect
Putin will not be able to rely on it and he therefore has two
choices. Either he can seek a union with the Communists, who
received an unexpectedly large amount of votes in the
presidential election, or he can work to establish his own
political base. JAC

BEREZOVSKII NEWSPAPER SAYS PUTIN WILL LEAVE ECONOMY TO
OLIGARCHS...

In one of many articles in Russian newspapers
over the past few days examining President-elect Putin's
likely policy toward the country's so-called oligarchs,
"Nezavisimaya gazeta" argued on 28 March that Putin will
continue to allow these business titans free rein in the
economic sphere but will restrict their activities in
politics. The daily, which receives financing from Boris
Berezovskii's LogoVAZ group, notes that Putin publicly
refused Berezovskii's help during his presidential campaign
and that he also criticized Unified Energy Systems head
Anatolii Chubais. However, in terms of the world market and
"the increasing competitiveness of domestic goods," the
"government itself understood that it could not hope to do
without the oligarchs' influence and resources in terms of
building up Russia's prestige." JAC

...AS DUMA TO ASK FOR INVESTIGATION INTO ALUMINUM DEAL

In
this context, the daily commented on Anti-Monopoly Minister
Ilya Yuzhanov's earlier declaration that the recent
acquisition by companies of more 60-70 percent of Russia's
aluminum industry "does not violate anti-monopoly legislation
since the investigation shows that in each case stakes of
less than 20 percent have been bought" (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 10 March 2000). The daily characterized this
decision on the aluminum deal as part of a policy of "non-
interference of the state in economic disputes and battles
waged by various clans." Meanwhile, State Duma Economic
Policy Committee Chairman Sergei Glaziev (Communist) told
reporters on 28 March that the lower legislative house is
preparing to ask the government to probe the concentration of
property in the aluminum industry. On 15 March, Yuzhanov had
said that the identity of the real shareholders in the
aluminum companies will "sooner or later" become clear as
they start consolidating their blocks of shares. JAC

DEFENSE MINISTER GETS EXTENSION

President-elect Vladimir
Putin has decided to extend Marshal Igor Sergeev's tenure as
defense minister for at least another year. Sergeev's
contract was due to expire on 20 April, when he turns 62, but
will now be extended until 20 April 2001, according to
"Kommersant-Daily" on 29 March. The daily suggested that
Putin probably did not want a shake-up in the armed forces to
take place before the military campaign in Chechnya is
completed. Speculation had been rife in the Russian media
that Sergeev, who was close to former President Boris
Yeltsin, would soon be replaced. JAC

KREMLIN, WHITE HOUSE TO EXPERIENCE BIG CHANGES IN JUNE?

"Kommersant-Daily" reported on 28 March that when President-
elect Putin took over the directorship of the Federal
Security Service, "he did not dismiss anyone for two months
and everyone was already thinking that was how everything
would stay. And then one day he signed a pile of edicts on
dismissals, replacing the majority of his deputies." The
newspaper added that these dismissals were prepared secretly,
without the knowledge of the entire former apparatus. JAC

PUTIN POPULAR AMONG RUSSIANS LIVING IN CIS

In casting their
absentee ballots in the 26 March presidential election,
Russian citizens living in Ukraine, Belarus, Tajikistan,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan voted to support
President-elect Putin at a higher rate than in many regions
within Russia. For example, Putin won 86.3 percent of votes
in Crimea, in Ukraine, 69.5 percent of votes in Belarus, and
80 percent of votes of Russians living in Kyrgyzstan,
according to preliminary data, "Nezavisimaya gazeta" reported
on 28 March. JAC

TSENTOROI FIGHTING CONTINUES

Kremlin Chechnya spokesman
Sergei Yastrzhembskii said on 28 March that fighting was
continuing in the village of Tsentoroi, in eastern Chechnya,
between federal forces and several hundred Chechen fighters
led by field commander Abdulaev, Interfax and AP reported.
Russian military spokesmen had claimed earlier that day that
Russian air and artillery attacks had forced the Chechens to
disperse. Fighting was also reported on 28 March near Argun,
east of Grozny. LF

ONE CHECHEN FIELD COMMANDER KILLED, ANOTHER CAPTURED

Federal
forces have captured Movladi Movzashev, who commanded the
Chechen resistance in the southern district of Shatoi, and
Chechen Security Ministry official Vahid Timaev, AP and
Interfax reported on 28 March, quoting Russian military
spokesmen. A second Chechen field commander, Khamzat Baraev,
was killed during the battle for Komsomolskoe earlier this
month, ITAR-TASS reported. LF

RUSSIA'S RESEARCH REACTORS DEEMED UNSAFE

Yurii Vishnevskii,
head of the State Atomic Energy Inspectorate, is quoted by
Interfax on 28 March as saying that Russia's research nuclear
reactors are unsafe owing to a lack of funds to maintain such
facilities. Of the country's 112 research reactors, 30 have
been operating for at least 30 years, he noted. Last year, 90
malfunctions at the reactors were reported, compared with 102
in 1998. According to Vishnevskii, the largest number of
malfunctions occurred last year at the Kursk plant. Also on
28 March, Atomic Energy Minister Yevgenii Adamov announced
that his ministry is capable of extracting spent fuel from
decommissioned nuclear submarines in less than 10 years,
rather than the 20 years planned, Interfax reported. In all,
some 535 tons of spent fuel are to be removed from 140
submarines. JC

ANOTHER GUILTY PLEA ENTERED IN BONY CASE

A former Bank of
New York employee, Svetlana Kudryavtseva, pleaded guilty on
28 March to money-laundering charges. Kudryavtseva admitted
that she had accepted $500 a month starting in 1996 to
oversee bank accounts that then Bank of New York Vice
President Lucy Edwards had set up illegally for Russian
clients to avoid taxation. Kudryavtseva also admitted to
lying to federal investigators about the scheme when they
first questioned her, AFP reported. JAC

RUSSIA SAYS IT DOESN'T NEED U.S. FOOD AID

First Deputy
Agriculture Minister Anatolii Mikhalev told Interfax on 28
March that Russia will manage to meet its grain requirements
without a new U.S. food assistance package. He added that
"there are problems with feed grain for livestock, but they
are solvable." Last September, the Russian government had
requested 5 million tons of food aid, and in December the
U.S. responded by offering what was then considered an
interim donation of 500,000 tons. Some 20,000 tons of seeds
were later added to that amount. In February 2000, Kemerovo
Governor and then presidential candidate Aman Tuleev accused
the U.S. of being reluctant to find out why U.S. rice
infected with a toxic fungus had been delivered to his
region, ITAR-TASS reported. That agency also reported that
Kemerovo has still not transferred 75 million rubles ($2.6
million) from the sale of U.S. food assistance to the federal
Pension Fund, as was originally agreed. JAC

FARMERS WANT TO RESTRICT OIL PRODUCT TRADE AGAIN

The
majority of agricultural enterprises in Stavropol Krai and
other southern regions of Russia have reportedly had to stop
sowing because of fuel shortages, "Izvestiya" reported on 29
March. The same day, Aleksandr Shiyanov, secretary of the
legislature of Stavropol Krai was expected to request that
the Federation Council act to reduce export quotas for oil
products. JAC

SPS BACKING MATVIENKO FOR ST. PETE GOVERNOR?

"Segodnya" on 29
March quotes Sergei Stankevich, former aide to President
Boris Yeltsin, as saying that the Union of Rightist (SPS)
Forces will support Deputy Prime Minister Valentina
Matvienko's candidacy in the May gubernatorial elections in
St. Petersburg. An agreement to that effect, he noted, will
be handed over to Matvienko by the end of this week. The
leadership of the SPS has hinted that it will support
Matvienko but has so far made no official statement to that
effect. Earlier this month, Matvienko announced that then
acting President Putin supported her candidacy in St.
Petersburg (see "End Note," "RFE/RL Newsline," 15 March
2000). JC

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT BEGINS VISIT TO GEORGIA

Robert Kocharian
arrived in Tbilisi on 28 March at the head of a delegation
that also included deputy parliamentary speaker Tigran
Torosian and five government ministers. During a 90-minute
meeting, Kocharian and his Georgian counterpart, Eduard
Shevardnadze, discussed bilateral relations and regional and
international issues, including Armenia's participation in
the TRACECA project and the possibility of requesting EU
funding to upgrade the highway linking Tbilisi and Yerevan,
Interfax reported. The two presidents also signed a joint
statement on expanding relations and presented each other
with state awards. LF

ARMENIAN, RUSSIAN TROOPS LAUNCH JOINT MANEUVERS

Motorized
infantry, tank and aviation units from the Armenian armed
forces and Russia's military base in Armenia began three days
of joint maneuvers in Armavir on 28 March under the
supervision of the commander of the Russian Group of Forces
in the Transcaucasus, Lieutenant General Vladimir Andreev,
Noyan Tapan reported. The object of the exercises is to check
the fighting trim of the troops and teamwork of various
troops and units of the Russian and Armenian armed forces. LF

TWELVE SUSPECTS IN KARABAKH SHOOTING RELEASED

Investigators
in Stepanakert said on 28 March that 12 persons taken into
custody last week on suspicion of involvement in the 22 March
attack on Arkadii Ghukasian, president of the unrecognized
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, have been released owing to a lack
of evidence, RFE/RL's Stepanakert correspondent reported. It
is unclear whether former Karabakh Defense Minister Samvel
Babayan, three of whose bodyguards have reportedly confessed
to the attack, was among those released. An unspecified
number of suspects have been detained. Speaking in Tbilisi
the same day, Armenian President Kocharian said that all the
persons directly involved in the assassination bid are in
custody, ITAR-TASS reported. He attributed the attack to
local opposition to Ghukasian's campaign to impose law and
order. LF

AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT CONGRATULATES PUTIN

In a message of
congratulation to Russian President-elect Putin, Heidar Aliyev
noted that the latter's 26 March election victory reflects
the support of Russian citizens for democratic reform as well
as for the strengthening of the state system and law and
order, Turan reported on 28 March. He expressed confidence
that the "traditional friendly relations" between Russia and
Azerbaijan will be developed in the name of regional
stability. "Dilis gazeti" on 28 March quoted Lyudvig
Chibirov, president of the unrecognized Republic of South
Ossetia, as congratulating Putin and expressing the hope that
after the 9 April Georgian presidential poll, Moscow and
Tbilisi will devote greater attention to resolving the South
Ossetian conflict. The same newspaper also quoted Abkhaz
presidential aide Astamur Tania as saying that Putin regards
Abkhazia as part of Russia's sphere of strategic interests
and for that reason will not condone a resumption of
hostilities in the region. LF

VETERAN GEORGIAN OPPOSITION LEADER CHALLENGES PRESIDENTIAL
CANDIDATES

Irakli Tsereteli, who for 11 years has headed the
Georgian National Independence Party, which is not
represented in the present parliament, has challenged
Shevardnadze, Adjar Supreme Council Chairman Aslan Abashidze,
and former Communist Party First Secretary Djumber
Patiashvili, to a televised debate, Caucasus Press reported
on 28 March. Shevardnadze, Abashidze, and Patiashvili are the
three main candidates in the 9 April presidential election.
Tsereteli is also one of the leaders of the Center for
Georgia's Freedom and Democracy, which is campaigning for a
nationwide boycott of that poll. LF

There is no connection between Georgian
intelligence and the Tsvizhba brothers, who are believed to
have ordered the murder in September 1995 of Abkhaz Deputy
Prime Minister Yurii Voronov, Caucasus Press reported on 28
March, quoting Vitali Mikhelidze, who is deputy security
minister of the Abkhaz government-in-exile. The Abkhaz
authorities have recently detained a man in connection with
the killing who, they claim, acted on instructions from the
Georgian security services (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 24 March
2000). LF

CIA DIRECTOR VISITS KAZAKHSTAN

George Tennet held talks with
Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbaev in Astana on 28
March, Reuters reported. No details of those talks were
revealed. LF

KYRGYZ OPPOSITION SETS CONDITIONS FOR DIALOGUE WITH
LEADERSHIP

Meeting with OSCE representative Jerzy Wenclaw in
Bishkek on 28 March, opposition party leaders Jypar Jeksheev,
Daniyar Usenov, and Omurbek SubanAliyev said they will accept
an invitation from President Askar Akaev and government
leaders to discuss the political situation only after the
release from custody of Ar-Namys party chairman Feliks Kulov,
RFE/RL's bureau in the Kyrgyz capital reported. They also
said that dialogue should take place under the aegis of the
OSCE. Meanwhile Kulov is proceeding with the hunger strike he
declared last week to protest his detention, while some 150
of his supporters continue their picket in central Bishkek.
Also on 28 March, a local official in Bishkek's Pervomai
district rejected a request by five opposition parties to
convene a meeting on 2 April to protest Kulov's arrest and
the falsification of the outcome of the recent parliamentary
elections. LF

ETHNIC UIGHUR SHOT DEAD IN KYRGYZ CAPITAL

Businessman
Aripzhan Zaripov, the head of the Ittipak Society that
represents Kyrgyzstan's 50,000-strong Uighur minority, was
shot dead outside his home in Bishkek on 28 March, RFE/RL's
bureau in the Kyrgyz capital reported. LF

TURKMEN, TURKISH PRESIDENTS DISCUSS GAS EXPORTS

On the first
day of an official visit to Turkmenistan, Suleyman Demirel
told his host, Saparmurat Niyazov, in Ashgabat on 28 March
that Turkey has already agreed to purchase from Turkmenistan
30 billion cubic meters of gas per year and thus there is no
need to reopen discussion of that issue, according to
Interfax. Niyazov, for his part, said that the planned Trans-
Caspian pipeline remains Turkmenistan's main choice of export
route, despite parallel talks on gas sales with Russia and
Iran. LF

OSCE, U.S. PROTEST CRACKDOWN ON BELARUSIAN OPPOSITION
RALLY

The OSCE on 28 March said it is alarmed about the
"unprovoked, unjustified, and exaggerated show of police
force" to disperse the Belarusian opposition rally in Minsk
on 25 March (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 and 28 March 2000).
The previous day the U.S. State Department condemned the
"brutal and unjustified" crackdown on the rally, adding
that "the Lukashenka regime's suppression of this
demonstration makes clear its disinterest in dialogue." And
U.S. State Department official Phil Reeker said "a decision
on the withdrawal of [Generalized System of Preference]
benefits for Belarus for failure to respect worker rights
will be announced soon." JM

UKRAINIAN COURT DEEMS TWO REFERENDUM QUESTIONS
UNCONSTITUTIONAL

The Constitutional Court on 29 March
announced that two questions set down in the presidential
decree on the 16 April referendum contravene the
constitution, Interfax reported. One of those questions
deals with a vote of no confidence in the current
parliament and the president's right to dissolve the
parliament if such a vote is passed. The other is on
adopting the country's constitution by means of a
referendum. The court ruled that the four remaining
questions may be included in the referendum ballot. As a
result of this ruling, Ukrainians will be asked on 16 April
to give the president the right to disband the parliament
if it fails to form a majority within a month or adopt a
budget within three months, to abolish lawmakers' immunity
from criminal prosecution, to reduce the 450-seat
parliament to 300 seats, and to introduce a bicameral
legislature. JM

OFFICIAL SAYS SOVIET-ERA COLLECTIVE FARMS NO LONGER EXIST
IN UKRAINE

"The Soviet-era system of collective farms has
ceased to exist in Ukraine," AP quoted Deputy Agriculture
Minister Roman Shmidt as saying in Kyiv on 28 March. Shmidt
said 10,551 collective farms have been reshaped into 11,100
new agricultural enterprises, mostly joint-stock companies
and cooperatives. The reform was in accordance with
President Leonid Kuchma's decree last December. That
decree, however, stopped short of allowing the free sale
and purchase of land. Shmidt argued that after disbanding
collective farms, some time will be needed to eradicate the
Soviet-era mentality among Ukrainian farmers. "I am not
sure if this Soviet collective farm system has ceased to
exist in [the farmers'] minds," he noted. JM

EU-ESTONIAN COMMITTEE DISCUSSES INTEGRATION PROGRESS

The EU-
Estonian inter-parliamentary committee, meeting in Tallinn on
28 March, discussed Estonia's progress in its integration
program with the EU. Later, the co-chairmen of the committee,
Per Stenmarck of the European Parliament and Tunne Kelam of
the Estonian parliament, discussed various problems in
Estonia's integration bid, namely the pace of passing laws
that conform with the EU's acquis communautaire. Stenmarck
added that Estonia's language law needs to be adjusted to
meet EU norms and to allow equal competition for all
businesses based in the EU, but he stressed that the law is
generally sound and the EU understands fully that Estonian is
the sole official language of the country. MH

LATVIAN PREMIER SELLS BUSINESS INTEREST

Earlier this year,
Andris Skele sold his holdings in the New Technology and
Business Development Corporation, formerly known as Ave Lat,
BNS reported on 28 March. The sale of Skele's 100 percent
holding earned the prime minister tens of millions of dollars
in promissory notes. Skele's spokesman said that when Skele
bought the company in April 1999, which then was a food
processing giant, he had not expected to be so involved in
politics again. It was only after the purchase, the spokesman
stressed, that Skele was catapulted back to the office of
prime minister. On returning to the prime minister's job in
the summer of 1999, he transferred the shares of the company
to an internationally recognized holding company in order to
quash allegations of conflict of interest. MH

POLAND'S INTERIOR MINISTER FACES NO CONFIDENCE MOTION

Some
100 parliamentary deputies from the opposition Democratic
Left Alliance (SLD) have demanded a vote of no confidence in
Interior Minister Marek Biernacki, PAP reported on 28 March.
SLD deputy Jerzy Dziewulski told journalists that the no
confidence motion is a result of the country's deteriorating
security situation and growing crime rate. Dziewulski added
that Biernacki has become involved in a "political adventure"
by proposing his candidacy as head of the National
Remembrance Institute (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 20 March 2000)
and has neglected his cabinet duties. According to
Dziewulski, the Interior Ministry poorly manages the police
and has so far not complied with its pledges to introduce a
central register of motor vehicles as well as new identity
cards. According to the agency, the motion is unlikely to
muster the 231 votes in the parliament that are required for
passage. JM

POLAND TO SEND ANOTHER 600 TROOPS TO KOSOVA

Responding to
last month's appeal by NATO's Supreme Commander Europe
General Wesley Clark, Poland has agreed to send another 600
troops to Kosova, AP reported on 28 March. Army spokesman
Adam Stasinski said the troops will help reinforce NATO in
the city of Kosovska Mitrovica, the scene of violent
confrontations between Serbs and ethnic Albanians. He added
that the troops will be deployed there in late April or early
May. Poland already has 770 soldiers serving with the 37,000-
strong peacekeeping force in the Serbian province. JM

CZECH PREMIER CONFIRMS APPOINTMENT OF NEW INTERIOR MINISTER

Czech Premier Milos Zeman said on 28 March that he will name
Stanislav Gross as interior minister, the daily "Mlada fronta
Dnes" reported. Zeman reportedly warned Gross in a telephone
call to "be prepared" for President Vaclav Havel to "exert
pressure on you." Havel and Gross met for informal talks the
same day, Havel's spokesman said. The appointment will
reportedly occur before a meeting of the Central Executive
Committee of the Social Democrats (CSSD) on 9 April. Gross is
a leader of a rival wing within the CSSD that has often
disagreed with Zeman's policies. PB

'MEIN KAMPF' PROVES BIG HIT IN CZECH REPUBLIC

The publisher
of a controversial Czech version of Adolf Hitler's "Mein
Kampf" said a second printing of the book is being planned
after the first printrun sold out in three days, CTK
reported. Michal Zitko, director of the Prague-based Otakar
II publishing house, said the "unprecedented media campaign,
for which I did not pay and in which I did not participate,"
led to the quick sale of 4,000 copies from the first
printing. Zitko went ahead with the printing despite
objections from Jewish and Romany organizations and a formal
request from the German embassy in Prague claiming that the
State of Bavaria owned the copyright to the book. Zitko said
the book is "part of our history, and everyone should have
the right to know it and make up his own mind.... I wanted to
make people familiar with who Hitler was and what his
ideology was so that they could protect themselves from it in
the future." PB

SLOVAKIA CONFIDENT AT EU NEGOTIATIONS...

Jan Figel,
Slovakia's chief negotiator with the EU, said on 28 March
that by June, Slovakia wants to close negotiations on at
least half of the eight chapters it has opened with the
union, TASR reported. Figel made his comments after
submitting position documents to EU officials in Brussels.
Figel said Slovakia will initially negotiate on science and
research; small and medium-sized enterprises; education;
statistics; economic competition; culture and audio-visual
policy; external relations; and common foreign and security
policy. He said he expects the first four to be negotiated
quickly because they are "straightforward" and Slovakia is
not requesting any transitional periods. Figel added that
Slovakia wants to open negotiations on another seven chapters
this year. Jan Marinus Wiersma, the EU representative to
Slovakia, said Slovakia's process is going quicker than
expected and noted that the opening of eight chapters is a
good sign since originally it had expected to only open five.
PB

...AS IT PREPARES PROGRAM ON NATO MEMBERSHIP

Slovak Premier
Mikulas Dzurinda chaired a cabinet committee meeting on 28
March to assess the country's plan for NATO accession, TASR
reported. The program will be presented at NATO headquarters
in Brussels next week by Slovak Defense Minister Pavol Kanis
and Foreign Minister Eduard Kukan. Implementation of the plan
will cost some 1.2 billion crowns ($27.8 million) this year
alone. Dzurinda noted that preparations over the next two
years by countries seeking membership are crucial to being
accepted into the alliance in the next wave. The next NATO
summit to possibly decide on new members is planned in 2002.
Dzurinda added that Slovaks have to be better informed about
the advantages of joining NATO. A recent survey showed that
51 percent of respondents favor becoming a member of the
alliance. Kanis said Bratislava must try to assure NATO of
the "irreversibility of developments in Slovakia." PB

HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER DISMISSES CRITICISM ON ANTI-
SEMITISM

Viktor Orban has dismissed a statement by the
executive director of the Federation of Hungarian Jewish
Authorities, Gusztav Zoltai, that anti-Semitism is
institutionalized in Hungary, Hungarian media reported on 29
March. At a Strasbourg meeting of the executive committee of
the European Jewish Congress, Zoltai accused the Hungarian
cabinet of not distancing itself from anti-Semitic groups.
Orban has also rejected comments in foreign newspapers
criticizing Hungarian media (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27 March
2000), saying that press freedom is dictated by choice and
that Hungarian readers can choose from a wide range of media
sources. MSZ

BALKAN RECONSTRUCTION CONFERENCE OPENS...

A two-day donors'
conference opened in Brussels on 29 March as part of the EU's
Balkan Stability Pact. Representatives of some 44 countries
and 37 international organizations are taking part. Balkan
participants are Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia,
Macedonia, Montenegro, and Romania. Pact Coordinator Bodo
Hombach told the "Berliner Zeitung" that he hopes to receive
at least $1 billion in pledges for projects he wants to
launch immediately. He will need several billion dollars more
to fund some 100 additional projects slated to start "within
the next two years," he added. Among projects devoted to
economic development, some $2.7 billion will be needed for
infrastructure alone. Other projects range from protecting
minority rights to supporting independent media. Hombach
stressed that any money spent on peaceful development in the
Balkans is a good investment. He argued that supporting
stability in the region "is cheap in relation to what
conflicts cost." PM

...AS DOUBTS ABOUT PACT CONTINUE

Hombach will need to use
all the powers of persuasion that he honed in his German
political career to convince skeptical governments and other
donors of the seriousness of his projects, the "Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung" wrote on 29 March. Many critics charge
that Hombach is a political appointee unqualified for the
post and that since his appointment in 1999 he has been more
concerned with his own salary and perks than with the
Balkans. Other critics note that the pact has awakened more
hopes within the Balkans than it can possible fulfill. Its
ability to fulfill its mission has been further hampered by
rivalries elsewhere in the EU bureaucracy, the Frankfurt
daily added. Hombach's office seeks to screen potential
projects and line the best ones up with sources of funding.
The pact does not fund projects on its own (see also "End
Note" below). PM

BOSNIAN LEADER APPEALS FOR BUILDING MATERIALS

Mirza Hajric,
who is an adviser to Bosnian Muslim leader Alija Izetbegovic,
said in Washington on 28 March that what returning refugees
"need is not some planning, not endless bureaucracy [but
rather ample supplies of] building material waiting for them
upon arrival.... Within two to three weeks they can build
their own houses themselves," AP reported. He argued that
unnecessary delays are caused by the current process of
enlisting construction companies to build the houses. Hajric
stressed that security remains a concern in only about 20
percent of Bosnia and that "dozens of thousands of families"
are ready to return to their homes in the remaining 80
percent. PM

IZETBEGOVIC SAYS BRCKO COULD BE MODEL FOR BOSNIA

Izetbegovic
said in Brcko that great efforts must be made so that people
of all nationalities can return to their homes in the Brcko
district, "Oslobodjenje" reported on 29 March (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 28 March 2000). If a multiethnic administration is
successful in Brcko, it could serve as a model for all of
Bosnia, he continued. PM

BOSNIAN SERB ARMY REJECTS BOSNIA-WIDE FORCE

Slobodan
Jelicic, who is deputy defense minister of the Republika
Srpska, said in Brussels that the Bosnian Serb army (VRS)
seeks membership in NATO's Partnership for Peace Program,
"Vesti" reported on 29 March. Jelicic stressed, however, that
the VRS must join the program as a distinct force and not as
part of a larger Bosnian army including Croatian and Muslim
forces. Jelicic argued that the Dayton peace agreement
clearly recognizes the VRS as a distinct force. NATO has
repeatedly told the VRS that it is welcome in Partnership for
Peace only as part of a Bosnia-wide army. PM

U.S. 'DISAPPOINTED' BY ALBANIAN FAILURE TO DISARM

State
Department spokesman James Foley said in Washington on 28
March that "we continue to stress to the [ethnic] Albanian
leadership in [Kosova] that we are serious about [earlier]
messages of zero tolerance for violence and extremism," AP
reported. He was referring to recent press reports that armed
ethnic Albanian militants in southwestern Serbia have not
made good on a promise to wage their struggle by political
means only (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 28 March 2000). PM

RETURN OF CONTACT GROUP?

Leading officials from the U.S.,
U.K., France, Germany, Italy, and Russia met in Paris on 28
March in the first gathering in more than one year of the
international Contact Group for the former Yugoslavia. The
officials issued a statement calling for the careful
preparation of the fall Kosova local elections and for the
early restoration of civilian administrative structures in
the province. The officials also expressed support for the
Serbian opposition and for the government of Montenegro. They
did not act on a French suggestion that the countries'
foreign ministers meet soon. PM

LAYWER CALLS FOR FREEING FRENCH COLONEL IN KOSOVA AFFAIR

William Bourdon, who is the attorney for Colonel Jean-Michel
Mechain, filed a formal request in Paris on 28 March for the
release of his client from police custody. The colonel is
under investigation for allegedly leaking to the press
confidential documents about divisions and differences of
opinions among the French in Kosova. One document said that
many French officers regard Bernard Kouchner, who is the
French head of the UN's civilian mission in the province, as
anti-Serb. In other news, London's "The Times" reported that
NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson and the alliance's
Supreme Commander Europe General Wesley Clark recently
cancelled scheduled visits to Mitrovica after the CIA learned
that Serbian forces planned to shoot down their helicopter
(see "RFE/RL Newsline," 24 March 2000). PM

CROATIAN BANK SCANDAL WINDING DOWN?

Some 3,000 angry account-
holders in Istarska Banka demonstrated in Pula on 28 March to
demand that the National Bank unfreeze their accounts (see
"RFE/RL Newsline," 28 March 2000). An RFE/RL correspondent
reported on 29 March from Zagreb that depositors will be
allowed "limited access" to their accounts. He added that
Istrian political leader Ivan Jakovcic has meanwhile
distanced himself from some of his earlier remarks suggesting
that Prime Minister Ivica Racan is partly responsible for the
scandal. National Bank Governor Marko Skreb may be forced to
resign as a result of the imbroglio, which made public
tensions between the larger and smaller members of the
governing six-party coalition, the correspondent noted. Skreb
denied charges from within Jakovcic's party that he
engineered the collapse of Istarska Banka in order to enable
the Rijecka Banka to buy it out, "Novi List" reported. Some
members of Racan's government are rumored to have ties to
Rijecka Banka, the RFE/RL correspondent added. PM

MESIC THREATENS REFERENDUM ON PRESIDENCY

Croatian President
Stipe Mesic said on 28 March that he will call a referendum
on whether to limit or "abolish" the powers of the president
if unnamed members of the government persist with what he
called moves to "abolish" his powers. Mesic charged that the
initiatives to limit his authority come from members of the
larger two-party coalition, who are unhappy that a member of
the smaller four-party coalition won the presidency. Earlier
this year, before the presidential vote, all political
parties agreed on the need to reduce the powers enjoyed by
the late President Franjo Tudjman. Since his election, Mesic
has stressed that he will use the presidency as a check on
the government. PM

YET ANOTHER RAILWAY STRIKE IN CROATIA

Railway workers
stopped trains throughout Croatia for one hour on the morning
of 29 March to protest management's plans to shut down some
loss-making local lines. Management argues that Croatian
Railways must reduce losses and become more efficient. The
leaders of the three railway workers' unions say that the
cuts will mean big job losses. The unions add that management
can reduce waste by fighting corruption within its own ranks.
PM

ROMANIAN GOLD MINING COMPANY AGAIN POLLUTES RIVERS

Some
10,000 tons of lead residue has spilled into the Rivers Vaser
and Viseu, tributaries of the Tisa (Tisza) River. The
incident was caused by the Aurul company in Baia Borsa that
was responsible for the cyanide spill in early February. The
company failed to notify the authorities of the spill, which
occurred on 27 March during heavy rainfalls that resulted in
the breaking of a five-meter stretch of a dam, RFE/RL's
Bucharest bureau and Reuters reported. Samples of water from
the Tisa show lead is 2.7 times over permitted levels.
Environment Minster Romica Tomescu visited the area on 28
March, together with World Bank director for Romania Andrew
Vorkink, who is currently in Romania to see how the bank can
help that country cope with ecological problems as well as
improve health care and wildlife conservation. MS

U.S. CONGRESSMAN DEFENDS REMARKS ON FORMER ROMANIAN
PRESIDENT

U.S. Helsinki Commission co-chairman Christopher
Smith has said he stands by his 23 March remarks about former
President Ion Iliescu and his Party of Social Democracy in
Romania, an RFE/RL correspondent in Washington reported on 28
March (see "RFE/RL Newsline,' 27 March 2000). Smith said he
had expressed a "legitimate concern about an issue that
concerns the national interest of the U.S." During his term
in office from 1990-1996, Iliescu was "indifferent" to
corruption, Smith noted. But he added that his remarks must
not be interpreted as an effort to influence the 2000
electoral process in Romania. Smith had spoken during a U.S.
Congress hearing on corruption in former communist countries.
MS

ROMANIAN DEMOCRATS CRITICIZE CONSTANTINESCU

Democratic Party
Senator Costel Gheorghiu, a member of the house's Defense
Commission, has harshly criticized President Emil
Constantinescu for having signed an ordinance on 13 March
allowing the transit of 5,000 KFOR troops through Romanian
territory over a three-month period. Gheorghiu said on 27
March that Constantinescu had acted "in cooperation" with
former Defense Minister Victor Babiuc. He said that the
ordinance contravenes the defense law, which stipulates that
such transit must be approved by the parliament and that the
government must request such approval. Gheorghiu said the
president's act established a dangerous precedent," adding
that NATO "does not appreciate servile attitudes" and
promotes respect for the rule of law. In other news,
Democratic Party Senator Cazimir Ionescu on 27 March resigned
from the party, saying its leadership has "marginalized" him.
MS

OSCE HEAD IN MOLDOVA SAYS PUTIN'S ELECTION TO HELP RESOLVE
SEPARATIST ISSUE

William Hill said on 28 March that the
election of Vladimir Putin to the Russian presidency will
help solve the problem of Moldova's separatist Transdniester
region, ITAR-TASS reported. Hill said he expects Putin to
take a more active role in the dispute, adding that the most
important part of reaching a resolution is finalization of an
agreement on the region's special status. He said the
presidents of Moldova, Ukraine, and Russia, as well as
Transdniesterian separatist leaders, will meet in Kyiv this
summer to discuss a draft of the agreement. In other news,
the Moldovan Information and Security Service dismissed as a
"provocation" Russian reports that a rehabilitation and
training center for Chechen rebels is being run in Moldova.
PB

BULGARIAN RULING PARTY'S POPULARITY WANES

The results of a
poll released on 29 March show that the approval rating of
Bulgarian Premier Ivan Kostov is at a record low, Reuters
reported. Only 28 percent of respondents said they are
satisfied with the government, led by Kostov's Union of
Democratic Forces. This is the party's lowest approval rating
since taking power nearly three years ago. Nearly 62 percent
said they were disappointed in the government. BBSS Gallup
pollster Kancho Stoichev said people are unhappy with "rising
unemployment, low salaries, lack of transparency in
privatization, and corruption." The government had a 34
percent approval rating one year ago. PB

KOSTOV SAYS PUTIN'S WIN WILL IMPROVE RELATIONS

Bulgarian
Premier Kostov said he is hopeful that Vladimir Putin's win
in the 26 March Russian presidential election will have a
"positive effect" on bilateral relations, ITAR-TASS reported
on 27 March. Kostov said Bulgaria wants Russia to continue
with the democratic process and have "authoritative
government and authoritative state institutions." He added
that Sofia hopes to improve lagging bilateral trade because
"each lost export dollar means lost jobs." PB

AGREEMENT ADVANCES TRANSPORT CORRIDOR AROUND SERBIA

By Ron Synovitz

After nine years of bickering, Romania and Bulgaria have
agreed on a site for a Danube River bridge that will allow
trans-Balkan traffic to bypass Serbia. The agreement, signed
in Bucharest on 27 March, is one of the first concrete
results of the Balkan Stability Pact.

The bridge is a key link in a EU project known as Pan-
European Transport Corridor Four. That project aims to create
a major north-south transport route linking Greece and
western Europe through Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary. Under
the 27 March agreement, the new bridge will cross the Danube
about 20 kilometers east of Serbia at the Bulgarian town of
Vidin and the Romanian river port of Calafat.

For years, Bucharest had lobbied for a bridge to be
built further to the east--a move that would have put the
north-south transport corridor closer to Bucharest as well as
increasing the amount of transit fees received by Romania.
Romanian officials finally agreed on the Vidin-Calafat site
under pressure from the EU.

Currently, the main road and rail routes between western
Europe and the Balkans pass through Yugoslavia. But all of
Serbia's Danube bridges were destroyed in NATO's air campaign
last year. Serbia's only existing route across the Danube
today--a tiny road on the "Iron Gates" dam between Serbia and
Romania--is north of Belgrade.

Even before NATO's air strikes, the EU had been eager to
create an alternative transport route bypassing Serbia.
Belgrade's neighbors suffered trade losses totaling billions
of dollars when the main transport route was cut by
international sanctions against Yugoslavia in the 1990s.

Those sanctions forced much of the trans-Balkan traffic
to pass along inferior roads in Bulgaria to the Romanian city
of Giurgiu--the site of the only existing bridge between
Romania and Bulgaria. In the mid-1990s, truck drivers
typically faced a border delay of 10 days there, and the
crossing earned itself the nickname "Bottleneck Bridge."

Bulgarian Prime Minister Ivan Kostov praised the idea of
a transportation route to the west that bypasses troubled
Serbia. "Trans-European Corridor Four is an alternative way
between southeastern Europe and Central Europe that does not
pass through Yugoslavia," he commented. "And that is why it
is very important for our country."

Kostov says construction of the bridge will start later
this year and will take about two-and-a-half years to
complete.

Romanian Prime Minister Mugur Isarescu is also happy
about the project. He noted that the new transport corridor
will pass through what he called "a stable region."

Bodo Hombach, the EU's special coordinator for the
Stability Pact, said the union will do its best to complete
the bridge as soon as possible. Hombach also noted that the
EU is committed to clearing debris from destroyed bridges
within Serbia to reopen the river to navigation sometime this
summer.

In the meantime, Hombach said, EU experts already have
started evaluating and coordinating details on the finances
needed to improve road and rail links near Vidin and Calafat.

Plans for the new bridge call for four lanes of road
traffic and two railroad lines. The project also includes
$200 million of financing through the Stability Pact to
improve road and rail lines in western Romania--particularly
through the Jiu Valley and the Carpathian mountains.

The Balkan Stability Pact was established last summer by
the EU and the Group of Eight countries to aid the political
and economic reconstruction of southeastern Europe in the
aftermath of the Kosova conflict. Balkan members are Albania,
Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania, and
Macedonia.

A donor conference opens in Brussels on 29 March under
the auspices of the Stability Pact to support reconstruction
in the Balkan signatory countries.

The European Investment Bank is in charge of the program
to repair and expand the region's infrastructure, including
transport projects.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is
leading programs to develop the private sector, and the World
Bank is responsible for the overall aid strategy.
The author is an RFE/RL senior correspondent based in Prague.